HomeBRIDGE Australia-Indonesia Partner School Visit 2013
SLIDESHOW
MTs PSA Ta’Allumul Huda, Ganggawang
& St Catherine’s Catholic College, Singleton
At the end of June, Ms Catherine Duffey and Ms Kim Hann, LOTE teachers from Saint Catherine’s Catholic College, Singleton traveled to Indonesia to visit with their BRIDGE Partner School, MTS PSA Ta’Allumul Huda. This visit was made possible by scholarships that were granted to the teachers from the Asia Education Foundation. The visit was definitely the experience of a lifetime for both teachers, who were welcomed so warmly into the school and village community that they were made to feel as though they were part of this large extended family.
Ms Catherine Duffey and Ms Kim Hann were met in the beautiful, historically and culturally significant city of Yogyakarta by their BRIDGE Partner School Teachers Pak Hendi and Bu Yovi, who were hosted in Singleton in May 2012. Together they made the long and winding journey back to the remote mountaintop village that is located in a spectacularly beautiful area of Central Java. The area is surrounded by lush old growth rainforests and pine forests at the higher altitudes. The village itself is flanked by fertile rice fields, vegetable gardens and fruit trees and is surrounded by pristine rivers and stunning mountain peaks.
Before traveling to the village, the teachers were fortunate to visit the amazing world heritage listed BorobodurTemple, which is the largest BuddhistTemple in the world. It dates back to the year 750 AD and was constructed during the reign of the Syailendra Dynasty. Sometime between the 10the and 15th centuries the temple was abandoned and subsequently became buried by volcanic ash. It was rediscovered and restored in the 19th and 20th century. It is laid out in the form of a lotus, the sacred flower of Buddha and is constructed entirely of andesite.
When driving through neighbouring villages to Ganggawang, Ms Catherine Duffey and Ms Kim Hann were very moved to see street banners, which both announced their visit to their BRIDGE Partner School of MTs PSA Ta’Allumul Huda, and welcomed them into the community. The welcoming ceremony for the arrival of the teachers on the first morning was a very moving experience. This involved the school band, the community of the village of Ganggawang, the students and teachers of the school, as well as religious, local and regional officials. The band gathered outside the boarding school and home of Kyai Hajji Saeful Rohman and extended his family, where the Australian teachers were hosted during their stay. As the teachers walked to school, they were followed by the marching band and greeted along the way by the people of the village of Ganggawang. Outside the school, not only did all students line up to greet the teachers, but there was also another welcome banner displayed.
A formal assembly was held, where a series of welcome speeches were given, including one in Indonesian by Ms Kim Hann, with a message from Mr. Brian Lacey, on behalf of the Saint Catherine’s Catholic College School Community. The students also sang the school song and the Indonesian National anthem to welcome the Australian Teachers. This was followed by a formal reception, with various presentations, which also included religious, local and regional officials. The Australian teachers felt very humbled and overwhelmed by this inspiring series of events, genuine hospitality and generosity of spirit.
Ms Catherine Duffey and Ms Kim Hann also really enjoyed the opportunity to interact with the teachers and students, both inside and outside of the classroom and also the boarding house. They also had the opportunity to visit and learn about various cottage industries in the village and in neighbouring villages, include basket-weaving, crafting batik and the production of a range of traditional snack foods. The Australian Teachers were very moved at being included in a traditional harvest thanksgiving ceremony in a beautiful rainforest setting. They also appreciated and enjoyed the cultural experience of visiting traditional markets and trying a range of traditional snacks and drinks. Catherine and Kim felt very honoured to be invited by the Head of the District of Salem, together with many other local officials, to a meeting with presentations and speeches at the District Office in the city of Salem, which is the capital of the Regency of Brebes, where Ganggawang is located.
The day before traveling to Jakarta, the Australian teachers and teachers from their Indonesian BRIDGE Partner School enjoyed a day trip to Pangandaran Beach in the Regency of Ciamis, West Java. They watched the sun rise over the Indian Ocean, enjoyed walking through the Pangandaran National Park to see long-tailed macaques, deer and peacocks, as well as visit a limestone cave, that was also a sacred Hindu site.
The visit by the Australian Teachers to their Indonesian BRIDGE Partner School was a great success. They felt very sad to say farewell to their Indonesian family in the community of Ganggawang. Amongst their strongest impressions are the smiles, happiness and laughter of the community, the sustainability of lifestyle of the village community, the impressive array of successful cottage industries, the genuine warmth, kindness and hospitality of the entire community and the spectacular views of beautiful villages, lush rice fields, virgin rainforest and old growth pine forests.
The Australian teachers look forward to continuing work on the BRIDGE Project with their Indonesian counterparts and have made some exciting new plans as a result of this wonderful trip. They wish to thank the beautiful community of Ganggawang for their genuine kindness, incredible hospitality and generosity. Here are some videos which show this beautiful spirit.
SELAMAT DATANG DI GANGGAWANG!
The wonderful Marching Band from MTs PSA Ta'Allumul Huda
KELAS 8A
The lovely Class 8A!
SAYONARA!
A warm-hearted farewell from the wonderful students at MTs PSA Ta'Allumul Huda Newspaper Articles About Our Wonderful Partner School Visit Bound For Indonesia
Partner School Visit 2013
SLIDESHOWMTs PSA Ta’Allumul Huda, Ganggawang
& St Catherine’s Catholic College, Singleton
At the end of June, Ms Catherine Duffey and Ms Kim Hann, LOTE teachers from Saint Catherine’s Catholic College, Singleton traveled to Indonesia to visit with their BRIDGE Partner School, MTS PSA Ta’Allumul Huda. This visit was made possible by scholarships that were granted to the teachers from the Asia Education Foundation. The visit was definitely the experience of a lifetime for both teachers, who were welcomed so warmly into the school and village community that they were made to feel as though they were part of this large extended family.
Ms Catherine Duffey and Ms Kim Hann were met in the beautiful, historically and culturally significant city of Yogyakarta by their BRIDGE Partner School Teachers Pak Hendi and Bu Yovi, who were hosted in Singleton in May 2012. Together they made the long and winding journey back to the remote mountaintop village that is located in a spectacularly beautiful area of Central Java. The area is surrounded by lush old growth rainforests and pine forests at the higher altitudes. The village itself is flanked by fertile rice fields, vegetable gardens and fruit trees and is surrounded by pristine rivers and stunning mountain peaks.
Before traveling to the village, the teachers were fortunate to visit the amazing world heritage listed BorobodurTemple, which is the largest BuddhistTemple in the world. It dates back to the year 750 AD and was constructed during the reign of the Syailendra Dynasty. Sometime between the 10the and 15th centuries the temple was abandoned and subsequently became buried by volcanic ash. It was rediscovered and restored in the 19th and 20th century. It is laid out in the form of a lotus, the sacred flower of Buddha and is constructed entirely of andesite.
When driving through neighbouring villages to Ganggawang, Ms Catherine Duffey and Ms Kim Hann were very moved to see street banners, which both announced their visit to their BRIDGE Partner School of MTs PSA Ta’Allumul Huda, and welcomed them into the community. The welcoming ceremony for the arrival of the teachers on the first morning was a very moving experience. This involved the school band, the community of the village of Ganggawang, the students and teachers of the school, as well as religious, local and regional officials. The band gathered outside the boarding school and home of Kyai Hajji Saeful Rohman and extended his family, where the Australian teachers were hosted during their stay. As the teachers walked to school, they were followed by the marching band and greeted along the way by the people of the village of Ganggawang. Outside the school, not only did all students line up to greet the teachers, but there was also another welcome banner displayed.
A formal assembly was held, where a series of welcome speeches were given, including one in Indonesian by Ms Kim Hann, with a message from Mr. Brian Lacey, on behalf of the Saint Catherine’s Catholic College School Community. The students also sang the school song and the Indonesian National anthem to welcome the Australian Teachers. This was followed by a formal reception, with various presentations, which also included religious, local and regional officials. The Australian teachers felt very humbled and overwhelmed by this inspiring series of events, genuine hospitality and generosity of spirit.
Ms Catherine Duffey and Ms Kim Hann also really enjoyed the opportunity to interact with the teachers and students, both inside and outside of the classroom and also the boarding house. They also had the opportunity to visit and learn about various cottage industries in the village and in neighbouring villages, include basket-weaving, crafting batik and the production of a range of traditional snack foods. The Australian Teachers were very moved at being included in a traditional harvest thanksgiving ceremony in a beautiful rainforest setting. They also appreciated and enjoyed the cultural experience of visiting traditional markets and trying a range of traditional snacks and drinks. Catherine and Kim felt very honoured to be invited by the Head of the District of Salem, together with many other local officials, to a meeting with presentations and speeches at the District Office in the city of Salem, which is the capital of the Regency of Brebes, where Ganggawang is located.
The day before traveling to Jakarta, the Australian teachers and teachers from their Indonesian BRIDGE Partner School enjoyed a day trip to Pangandaran Beach in the Regency of Ciamis, West Java. They watched the sun rise over the Indian Ocean, enjoyed walking through the Pangandaran National Park to see long-tailed macaques, deer and peacocks, as well as visit a limestone cave, that was also a sacred Hindu site.
The visit by the Australian Teachers to their Indonesian BRIDGE Partner School was a great success. They felt very sad to say farewell to their Indonesian family in the community of Ganggawang. Amongst their strongest impressions are the smiles, happiness and laughter of the community, the sustainability of lifestyle of the village community, the impressive array of successful cottage industries, the genuine warmth, kindness and hospitality of the entire community and the spectacular views of beautiful villages, lush rice fields, virgin rainforest and old growth pine forests.
The Australian teachers look forward to continuing work on the BRIDGE Project with their Indonesian counterparts and have made some exciting new plans as a result of this wonderful trip. They wish to thank the beautiful community of Ganggawang for their genuine kindness, incredible hospitality and generosity. Here are some videos which show this beautiful spirit.
SELAMAT DATANG DI GANGGAWANG!
The wonderful Marching Band from MTs PSA Ta'Allumul Huda
KELAS 8A
The lovely Class 8A!
SAYONARA!
A warm-hearted farewell from the wonderful students at MTs PSA Ta'Allumul Huda
Newspaper Articles About Our Wonderful Partner School Visit
Bound For Indonesia
Indonesian Trip One Teachers Will Cherish